Win Tickets to See Earlimart

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Aug 21, 2007 2:25PM

Earlimart's newest disc Mentor Tormentor has been getting a lot of play in the Chicagoist offices. In truth, we admit that we've strong-armed a few of the newer writers out of their turn when the time came to make their own selection on the office hi-fi, just so we could hear the disc one more time. If you're newer to the band, the simplest reference points one needs to get a grip on the group's sound is to imagine Grandaddy fronted by the melodic smarts and emotional delivery of Elliott Smith. And if those musical reference points are meaningless to you, then instead we ask you to imagine a band whose lush style is filled with contradictory delivery methods honed to perfection in the studio. And if that still comes off as gobbledygook, then let's just describe them as being pretty kick-ass.

On the road, the band releases the ties holding together the densely packed recorded versions of their catalog, allowing the music to tumble forth, fighting for space as the air reverberates off their cabinets, spilling off the stage and over the crowd. The tender melodies remain, but get delivered with a more primal immediacy, and the crowd roars its approval.

The last time we saw the band they played Schubas, and we believe that room is the perfect size for them, allowing their music to fill every nook and cranny without suffocating the crowd. So we're pretty stoked that they're coming back through town and stopping by Schubas again on August 30. But what we're really excited about is the fact that the band wants to invite two Chicagoist readers to enjoy the show for free! All you need to do is fill out the entry form after the jump before August 28 and you'll be in the running to score two free tickets to the August 30 show. And, just so you know, and can sing all the new songs along with the band when you see them, Mentor Tormentor is out today.

Photo by Eric Nowels